There is a great divide in the Ghanaian movie industry and this became more evident prior to the last Ghana Movie Awards when the local dialect actors ‘Kumawood actors’, threatened to boycott the event. Some Twi actors since and after the awards have complained bitterly about how some of their ‘counterparts’, the English speaking actors treat them especially at public events. Some mentioned that the English speaking actors tend to embarrass them when they even get close to them.
The Ghana Movie Industry is one industry running on different dialects. It doesn’t matter to me if an actor belongs to Kumawood or Gollywood, they’re all part of the creative industry. The fact that somebody speaks English in his/her field and another speaks Twi in his/her field does not make one better than the other.
When I read this report in Graphic Showbiz, it was like reading about two different countries competing against each other. The actors who complained about the excessive snobbish behaviour of some English actors were, Kwaku Manu, Akrobeto and Salinco.
Kwaku Manu mentioned that on several occasions, he had tried chatting with some of the English-speaking glamour-type actors at events and the responses he had received were rather chilly, quoting him: “As though those of us who act in Twi are second-rate.”
Citing an example of one of such embarrassing as the 2011 Ghana Movie Awards, he said, he personally approached three English-speaking actors in a conversation and their reaction suggested that they did not recognise him as a colleague actor. The actor also mentioned that on another occasion, Nana Ama McBrown introduced him to some English-speaking actors at an event and he experienced a similar humiliation. “I get the impression that they see themselves as better than us and therefore look down on us” he said.
Actor Salinco was more candid about his experience. He mentioned that there had been several occasions Majid Michel has shunned him. “I have met Majid several times and anytime I try talking to him, he doesn’t even look at me or consider me as a human being. I believe we are all actors so if the English speaking actors are looking down on us, then we are not united.”
Akrobeto says he avoids them completely because he does not want any embarrassment. “Most of the glamour actors feel they are more educated than us and therefore they do not want to mingle with us but that is cool with me because I don’t go close to them either. Whether you believe it or not, the Twi-speaking actors make more money than they do so if they think they are big I don’t give a hoot about it.”
The only actresses who said she had never had that experience was Emelia brobbey, probably because she acts in English movies so she is classified as educated. When this issue was put in front of English speaking actor-Van Vicker, he said- if any Twi speaking actor has been embarrassed by any of his colleague actors then that was an unfortunate situation but he felt that attitude should not be encouraged. “I have always said that no actor can stay on top for ever; there is time for everybody so why don’t we all come together as one?”
If we are all crying for a better Movie Industry and some players are putting up this attitude, then I’m sorry, we’re staying where we are. If they cannot accommodate their own, they shouldn’t expect someone to accept them when they FINALLY get into their Hollywood.
While the local dialects are doing their thing and the English actors are doing their thing, everything must be stringed together to move us forward, that is how it works; but if one party feels they’re better than the other, the industry will remain stagnant.
Ohhh wow this is very hard to believe.
I dont have to be in the movie industry to know that such a thing is going on. I can sense it from afar and its obvious most of the actors & actresses of English language movies are snobs.
If that is the case, why i’m i using if, it is really bad. very bad!
well, its the same in Business World…CFO of company ABC dont mingle with a CFO of company XYZ. especially when the audience is the same
The Twi movies makes me 4got abou my stress frm work…Akrobeto said it all that’s why I like this man soo much..
I believe dem … cos its written in sm of their faces.. some r sooo rude even to their fans so it not surprisin… its veri bad for sm1 humiliate or embarrass u in de midst of ppl.. i av been chattin with sm of the english actors recently.. i oneday i love de twi movies more cos deir movies make alot of sense no porn shot etc etc… buh wat he said was… Oh leave dem those people… we see dem as concert people …. we de english do no associate with them… i was so surprise.. i felt bad…
@RocklynLove,WHAT! an actor told u that? Why didn’t u poke the person? That is very very rude! Nobody is above anyone, whether they speak queens english or LAFA! ahh
@nat,I know ma dear i knw… u see how nigerians do their thin?? they ve got Nollywood for all deir movies… there is any lagoswood… but onli ghanians….. i cant mention de actors name… but he said it straight… i was kinda shock n surprise
Lmao….wow…I guess I understand why the local dialect speaking actors formed the whole kumawood thing…but before I even go further, why would u want to have Ghollywood and kumawood in the same country…if its one GHANA, why dnt we just leave as “GHOLLYWOOD”…by forming a new group also adds to that division….and it looks to me that kumawood is only for ppl in Kumasi…u cannot form a body called KUMAWOOD and say its for all local speaking dialect…it doesn’t work that way…
Now to this issue…BIG WOW…first of all, these English ppl need to chill with their wack, fake, unpardonable accent….man, they r feeling too big in gh right….they better relax…I dnt even know what to say to them at this point…when the industry almost collapsed, it was the likes of agya koo and the rest to resurrect it…Akrobs, dnt worry because THEY CAN NEVER BE BETTER…look at these wannabes trying to think they are better than someone because they went SOME school biii, mtcheeeeeew
Lmao….wow…I guess I understand why the local dialect speaking actors formed the whole kumawood thing…but before I even go further, why would u want to have Ghollywood and kumawood in the same country…if its one GHANA, why dnt we just leave as “GHOLLYWOOD”…by forming a new group also adds to that division….and it looks to me that kumawood is only for ppl in Kumasi…u cannot form a body called KUMAWOOD and say its for all local speaking dialect…it doesn’t work that way…
Now to this issue…BIG WOW…first of all, these English ppl need to chill with their wack, fake, unpardonable accent….man, they r feeling too big in gh right….they better relax…I dnt even know what to say to them at this point…when the industry almost collapsed, it was the likes of agya koo and the rest to resurrect it…Akrobs, dnt worry because THEY CAN NEVER BE BETTER…look at these wannabes trying to think they are better than someone because they went SOME school biii, mtcheeeeeew
wooow english speakin actors indeed….. apuuuutaaaaaaan tweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaa………….luk @ dem feelin sooooo happy nd proud about de soft pono they do as movie………………i dnt evn recognise dem at alllllll……….Kwaku Manu u nd ur brodas should continue wth u r work………..dnt mind those hypocrites……. sham on dem
I can picture a certain celeb with her nose touted up in the air like a pig, n acts like her shit doesnt stink, these so called english speaking actors are full of themselves, n the funny thing is they dont speak good english anyway. This is why i went back to watching the twi movies, they make funny sensible movies.
@Ball so hard miss dior,yes u r ryt…… twi movies make sense n sometimes we learn lessons from it… De english movies r full of PORNOOOOO
In my opinion this phenomenom is not only in the Ghanaian Movie Industry but generally among us Ghanaians. SOME OF US ARE EVEN ASHAMED OF SPEAKING THEIR LANGUAGES TO THEIR KIDS(even in Ghana….. i have seen this feelifili) We think that the english language is superior than our own. Thats why we are trying to copy american/british accents which sounds very strange at the end.
The question is why are we ashamed of speaking our local languages( especially those who like brofolizing) Does it make us superior ? Does it make us civilized?
If u go to france they speak French
If u go to the netherlands they speak dutch
in germany they speak german
in japan they speak japanese …………….
So why do we africans like to pretend that we dont have any language ?
@Ghanahene, U’re very right. hmm say that again. A friend came down from Ghana to England, asked her son ‘etisen’, the boy just stood there staring at me. Her mum said ‘oh, he cannot speak twi, i banished all that kumasi from him’. I just shook my head.
@nat,hmmmmmm